Film Review: Creed II

Sexuality/Nudity Mature
Violence Mature
Vulgarity Acceptable
Anti-Catholic Philosophy Mature


I only caught the first Creed movie on TV a few days before going to the theater to see Creed II.  Watching them back to back, I was struck by how natural the sequel felt as a continuation of the story.

The story picks up a few months after the original film.  Adonis "Donny" Creed (Michael B. Jordan) finally has has another shot to become the boxing champion.  (MILD SPOILER IN THIS PARAGRAPH).  Early in the film, he finally becomes the champ like his father, Apollo.  But he is still dogged by his sense of inadequacy, even though he has the loving support of his trainer Rocky Balboa (a once again amazing Sylvester Stallone), his girlfriend Bianca (Tessa Thompson) and his adopted mother Mary Anne (Phylicia Rashad).  Things get more serious when Viktor Drago (Florian Munteanu) challenges him.  Viktor is the son of the disgraced Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren) who killed Donny's father in Rocky IV.  This raises the emotional stakes for everyone and leads to a dramatic confrontation.

The movie works incredibly well because it balances two in proper proportion: familiarity and novelty.  This movie is essentially Rocky VIII, so it requires the movie to hit certain thematic, plot, and character beats that we expect in a Rocky film, like the training montage, the inspiring romantic relationship, and the final match.  In fact, the movie feels like it condensed the plot points of Rocky II, III, and IV, all into one film, and that is not a bad thing.  But writers Cheo Hodari Coker, Ryan Coogler, and Sascha Penn understand that if all they are offering is a rehash of the the old series then there is no way to distinguish it from what came before.  Like Donny himself, Creed II has to forge its own path with its own unique flavor.  Donny is not Rocky.  While both struggled to find their place in the world and their own self-worth, they both come at it from very different ways.  Rocky was always sad about being a "bum from the streets."  Donny is angry that he never got to have his father in his life.

Jordan is fantastic as Donny.  His performance is not too emotional, but is rather restrained and stoic the way his character should be.  Whereas Rocky was always naturally kind and affectionate, Donny struggles to be vulnerable and Jordan makes us see this.  His performances in the boxing ring are particularly good.  One of the things that helps sell a good fight is not only the physical prowess of the actors but their ability to make you feel their action vicariously.  When Donny gets hit, Jordan makes us feel as if we have taken a sharp crack to the ribs.  Stallone is amazing as Rocky.  He has built up so much good will with audiences over this character that watching him on screen feels like spending time with an old friend.  I was surprised how good Lundgren was here.  His Drago wears his humiliation around him like a Scarlet Letter and we can see the bond and the strain this puts on his son.  Thompson does an excellent job as someone who is not a fan of watching her man put himself into harms way and Rashad provides a quiet sense of dignity and heart.

Director Steven Caple Jr. does a good job of moving the story forward and getting us to connect o the character's journeys.  He is not as bold and innovative as Coogler was in the first Creed, but that is not a knock on Caple's talent.  Instead of being showy with the camera, he lets the characters drive the story and that is something he does very well.  And he makes the action and training scenes exciting and fun to watch.

The movies are also thematically rich in their content and complex in their characters.  The Rocky movies tend to do a good job at giving the main antagonists some depth.  With the exception of Clubber Lang, all of the boxing opponents had layers to them (and Lang's lack of depth was compensated by Mr. T's charisma and brutality).  Even Drago in Rocky IV had more depth beneath the surface, which came out before his final round.  Drago was a Frankenstein's monster who was put together to fight.  Ivan is doing the same thing to his son, but only to help his son have a sense of worth that he lost.  All of the characters are dealing with the roles of fathers in the lives of their children and how if those bonds are not nurtured well, they can leave the biggest scars.  This is such an important and refreshing message as mainstream society keeps dememphasize the importance and necessity of fathers.  It reminds me why Jesus told us that we always have a Father in God and a mother in Mary.  We need those relationships to help mold us and guide us into the people we are meant to be.  Our earthly parents are supposed to be that.  In this movie Rocky and Mary are that for Donny: they show unconditional love even when you are at your lowest.

Creed II feels like a natural progression of the main character's story and I cannot wait to see where he goes next.

image by Yasir72.multan